The Irish standard., 1887-11-19
the MANCHESTER MARTYRS
A. November Narrative OF What
Happened Twenty Years
Ago.
THE DEATH OF SERGEANT BRETT
The Arrest, Trial and Execution Of
Allen, Larkin and
O'Brien.

O'Brien.
[Boston Republic
AS the twentieth anniversary Of the
execution of the Manchester MAJ tyrs
falls in the present month Of Noyem-
Der, brief recital Of the events which
preceded that judicial murder on the part
o. the English government may not be
without it's interest to the readers of
The Republic. and consequently. the
story of Allen, Larkin and O'Brien is
here succinctly submitted. In the fall
of 1867, some policemen who were Oh
duty in Oak street, in Manchester,
England, noticed four stalwart-look-
| ing men lettering about upon heir
beats and began to watch them. The
objects of this surveillance entered q
clothing establishment, and the police,
who also entered the place, after listen
ing to the conversation of the suspect
ed men, determined to arrest them, be-
lieying that they were meditating some
illegal enterprise. Two Of the quartette
managed to make their escape, their
companions falling into the clutches
of the constables. Loaded 1eyo}yers
were found upon them, and, though
both the prisoners claimed to be Ameri-
can citizens, one giving the name OF
Martin Williams and the ether that Of
John White, they We're committed to
jail under the vagrancv act, though
they both asserted and proved that
they bad abundant means of procuring
livelihood, without asking for aims or
charity. When the term of their i'm
prisonment for vagrancy was about TO
expire, detective asked for their fur
ther detention on the ground that he
believed they were members of the Fen
ian Brotherhood, then an alarming as
sociation in the eyes of John Bull, and,
as may readily be supposed, his request
was at once granted. Investigation
showed that the man claiming to be
Williams was none other than Colonel
Thomas J. Kelly, upon whose captu: e
great store was set, as he WAS the one
who had personally supervised the es-
cape Of James Stephens, and he was,
furthermore, representative OF high
renown in the Fenian Brotherhood.
White WAS discovered al the same time
to be none other than the We'll known
Captain Deasey. The Identification OF
The prisoners was brought about by the
chief Inspector of the Manchester de-
tectiye force, and. as SOON as their pre-
liminary trial was over, both were fully
committed, and, on the 18th Of Septem-
Der, 1867, thew were handed over To- the
police fol incarceration. The prison
van was al once called Into requisition.
and into separate compartments in that
vehicle Colonel Kelly and Captain
Deasey, both handcntfed, were placed
for transportation to Jail. The Fenian
Brotherhood had not been idle during
the time that elapsed between the az
rest of Kelly and Deasey and their com
mitment to prison, and plans were at
once formed for the rescue OF the prls-
oners. Dublin Castle and Scotland
Yard were on the alert, too, and on the
morning when the two men were to be
transferred from the dock to the jail,
te,egrams were sent from Dublin and
London to the Manchester authorities.
warning them that every precaution
should be taken to thwart a rescue,
which there were good reasons to be-
Iieye would be attempted. In conse-
uuence Of this information the Black
Maria that carried the haDdcuffed rnen
inside was well manned by policemen
as it wended it's way to the Manchester
county Jail. Two bobbles sat OH the
box; one on each side Of the driver; two
more stood on the step in the rear Of
the vehicle, while Sergeanls Brett sat
inside, and four other officers followed
the van closely in cab. The borough
jail was situated in Stafford, ABOUT two
miles distant from the place where the
trial had taken place, and it was be-
tween 3 and o'clock in the afternoon
when the prison van started tor it with
its well-guarded freight. The driver
had accomplished about half his jour
ney and had reached Hyde road, in
Bellevue, when, as the van was passing
the railroad arch, it was stopped By a
determined looking individual who.
pointed afrevolver at tile drivers head.
and bade him attempt to drive On at
his peril In the twink king Of an eye
the Black Maria was surrounded by
thirty armed men, and when the driver
jagged his horses forward he was tunlssI
1bledS from his seat bya shot, which,,
|thongllii 81 did not 81 him, srrifed him
ssos that ne fell PIN sheer ght.